Therefore this promise of the coming Spirit points to the future

[Guest guest]

" It states that the Fourth Gospel does not narrate Jesus' baptism but

explains its significance. Since the Holy Spirit descended and

remained on Him, He is singled out as the Son of God who will baptize

with the Holy Spirit (John 1:32-34.) His teachings direct to rebirth

through the Spirit where a new state of being is attained by the

grace of the Spirit — this is the only way of entering the Kingdom of

the Spirit. Water is associated with the Spirit (John 3:5-8; cf

1:13.) However, this salvation of humankind through rebirth can only

take place after His death and exaltation (cf 3:14.) Therefore this

promise of the coming Spirit points to the future: " Now this he said

about the Spirit, which those who believed in him were to receive;

for as yet the Spirit had not been given [or, Spirit was not yet],

because Jesus was not yet glorified " (7:39.) The discourses following

Last Supper hold the key to the narration of the Spirit. It is

referred to as the " paraclete " (Counselor) or " advocate " ,

" intercessor " or more appropriately the Spirit of paraclesis i.e. the

declaration of the comfort and encouragement of the gospel in the

coming age that would fulfill this promise. "

 

Dictionary of the Bible

(Dictionary of the Bible, C. S. Sons, 1963, p. 393.)

 

 

" Christ didn't say that, " I am the Destination. " He said, " I'll send

you the Holy Ghost; I'll send you a Comforter; I'll send you a

Redeemer; I'll send you a Counselor. " He talked about the future. "

 

Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi

 

 

What is the Kingdom of God? - David Kroll

 

The key to understanding the scriptures, as is true of anything we

read, is to read the statements of its writers in context. Who is

being addressed and what meaning would it have for those being

addressed. In most cases when Christ and the apostles addressed the

people of their time, it was with the intention of conveying meaning

to them. That is the purpose of communication.

 

When John the Baptist appeared in the Judean desert and began his

ministry, what did John preach? " Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is

near. " (Matt. 3:2) After John was put in prison and Christ began His

ministry, what did Christ preach? " The time has come, He said. The

Kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news. " (Mark

1:15)...

 

Both John and Christ said that the Kingdom of God was near. Christ

said that the time had come. Both John and Christ admonished those

who they were addressing to repent in relation to the Kingdom being

near. If the Kingdom was only to be something to appear thousands of

years into the future, the admonition to repent because the Kingdom

was imminent would have made no sense at all. They were being asked

to repent in relation to the Kingdom being near.

 

In Matthew 10:5-7, Christ instructs His disciples to go to the

lost sheep of Israel and preach this message: " The Kingdom of heaven

is near. " If you would have been living 2000 years ago as one of the

lost sheep of Israel, and someone comes to your town and begins

telling you about the kingdom of heaven being at hand, you would not

have concluded that this Kingdom was not really at hand but way off

in the future.

 

It's interesting to note at this point that the Jews of Christ's

time were looking for a physical kingdom to appear in their time and

deliver them from their Roman oppressors. They were familiar with the

writings of Daniel and other of the prophets and according to their

calculations the Kingdom of God was right around the corner. There

understanding of the Kingdom was not, however, what Christ was

bringing to the table. Just like many Christians today, the Jews were

looking for a physical Kingdom to bring order, peace and justice to

an oppressed world. Yet when Christ appeared before Pilate, what did

He say?

 

John 18:36:36: Jesus said, " My kingdom is not of this world. If it

were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But

now my kingdom is from another place. "

 

The Greek for world is kosmos. Kosmos has broad application in the

Greek language with the common thread being that the word refers to

the physical realm. Christ was essentially saying that His Kingdom

was not of this physical realm. Was Christ saying that His Kingdom

does not apply to the physical realm? Is Christ here possibly

speaking of the Kingdom as a spiritual dynamic?

 

We must realize that the good news of the Kingdom was a focal

point of Christ's message. Christ gave more than a dozen parables

explaining the nature of the Kingdom. Apostle Paul was constantly

teaching about the Kingdom. A variety of writings from the first

century that did not become Biblical scripture, also attest to this

fact. It is therefore imperative that we understand what the Kingdom

is. If the Kingdom is not part of the physical realm, what realm is

it part of. Was Christ looking at the Kingdom as being part of a

future physical realm when he made His statement to Pilate? Was

Christ saying that the Kingdom is non physical?

 

Let's look at a profound statement make by Christ in answer to a

question presented to him about the Kingdom.

 

Luke 17:20-21: Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the

kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, " The kingdom of God does

not come with your careful observation, nor will people say, `Here it

is,' or `There it is,' because the kingdom of God is within you. " ...

 

Scripture identifies the Kingdom as the way of righteousness.

 

Romans 14:17: " For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating

and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit "

 

Matthew 6:33: " But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness,

and all these things will be given to you as well. "

 

We see the way of righteousness and entering the Kingdom as

synonymous. Being in the Kingdom is all about how we behave. It is

all about our conduct, our attitude, our way of living. It is all

about being born again.

 

John 3:1-10: Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus,

a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and

said, " Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no

one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not

with him. " In reply Jesus declared, " I tell you the truth, no one can

see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. " " How can a man be

born when he is old? " Nicodemus asked. " Surely he cannot enter a

second time into his mother's womb to be born! " Jesus answered, " I

tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is

born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the

Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my

saying, `You must be born again.' The wind blows wherever it pleases.

You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where

it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit. "

 

What is the Kingdom of God? - David Kroll

 

 

" You have to rise into that new realm which is the realm of God

Almighty, what you call the Kingdom of God. And He said it very

clearly to Nicodemus that " You have to be born again, " and when he

asked " 'Am I to enter back into my mother's womb to be born again? "

And He said it so clearly! It's so clear. Those who don't want to see

can remain blind, but he said it very very clearly; that " No,-that

is, whatever is born of the flesh is the flesh, but whatever is born

of the Spirit is the Spirit. "

 

I mean nothing could be more clear than that, that it has to be

born 'of the Spirit'. Of course, human beings have a special capacity

to twist everything around. For them Spirit could be a book, could be

some words, could be an organisation, a church, or some sort of a

thing like that which they have made. But whatever is man-made is not

the Spirit; this is the clear statement of Christ, which people wanted

to avoid and start their own organisations, their own ideas and

created a very mythical thing in His name. And now the time has come

for it to be blasted. It has been going on and on now for thousands

of years, captured so many innocent people, and people are into it.

 

But when you are resurrected, and you become realised souls, one has

to understand that now your movement is inward; you are moving towards

your roots and not outside. So whatever was the endeavour before

realisation has to be changed; the direction has to be changed. And

that point mostly we miss. This is the thing today I am trying to

explain to you that so far to a human mind entertainment was

important; entertaining to the mind, not to the Spirit. Entertainment

to the Spirit is absolutely opposite to the entertainment to the

mind. "

 

Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi